Gusts of violent wind, accompanied by murderous intent, blew toward Tan Tan!
The pure energy in the wind turned even the entire dimension into a blackhole!
Everywhere that the blasts of energy swept past, large spreads of the dimension shattered! They ripped apart to form black holes, just like pieces of paper burning into ashes and then disintegrating after a light touch. This was actually clearly visible to the naked eye!
The power of a desperate attack of a ninth-grade Supreme Martial Artist could be said to be heaven-shaking and earth-shattering!
However, Tan Tan’s three rays of light disregarded all the palm shadows and all the energy, passing right through Lan Buhui’s densely-packed palm shadows and wind impact, just like a gale blowing through sparse forests.
When the three lights come together! He shall be invincible!
The power of the light was in no way something that formless internal energy like this could block! Just like how there was limitless spiritual energy between heaven and earth, yet the sun could still shine onto the earth directly without fail!
However, since Lan Buhui had chosen to launch this desperate skill despite knowing who he was facing, it naturally wasn’t to resist the other party’s Great Three Stars Technique.
Rather, it was intended to destroy the other party’s physical body!
Your power can take the form of light to shoot toward me, but surely not even your body will truly be indestructible? Surely it isn’t transient as well?
This was the true meaning behind Lan Buhui’s words of ‘perishing together’!
In that instant where his opponent’s three lights merged as one, Lan Buhui knew that it was no longer possible for him to escape from his fate.
It was obvious that this Demon King in front of him hadn’t fully awakened yet. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have needed to take three steps to invoke the Great Three Stars Technique. He would have been able to launch it within a breath instead.
If he had immediately risked his life to go on the offensive at the point where he had uttered ‘Rise of the golden sun’, the situation definitely wouldn’t have deteriorated to this extent!
But when his three stars had come together as one, even if it were Ning Tianya who was here right now, there wouldn’t be anything he could do other than to die with regrets!
Because… Using the power of a single person to invoke the power of the sun, moon and stars and then subsequently letting all of it erupt from one’s physical body — This was straight up a force that this world couldn’t resist at all!
Therefore, Lan Buhui’s last hope was — Letting the other party kill him first, then he’ll kill him after that!
And perish together!
Tan Tan’s Great Three Stars Technique passed through the violent energy currents and flowed wildly and forcefully into Lan Buhui!
But at the same time, Lan Buhui’s forceful energy currents surged violently toward Tan Tan.
Tan Tan let out a thunderous shout. His body spun violently. All the black aura in the sky converged toward him and spun along with him, as though a spinning top. Within an instant, he transformed into a tornado which could pierce through the heavens and shoot through the earth!
He made use of spin after spin to wear down the power from Lan Buhui’s desperate attack!
Just like what Lan Buhui had guessed, although Tan Tan was capable of invoking the secret arts to stimulate his bloodline into awakening his soul and unleashing the Great Three Stars Technique, his physical body was still at the stage of a ninth-grade mid-level Supreme Martial Artist right now.
Against the desperate retaliation of Lan Buhui who was at the same martial domain level as him, there was absolutely no way he could easily neutralize his attack!
The next moment, a deafening boom resounded!
Together with the black aura circling around him, Tan Tan plummeted from the sky, throwing up mouthfuls of blood.
Chu Yang flew into the sky at this moment and caught hold of Tan Tan. At the point of contact, that violent and torrential energy passed through Tan Tan and hit Chu Yang. Well aware that the desperate attack unleashed by a ninth-grade Supreme Martial Artist on the brink of death wasn’t something which he could withstand even after Tan Tan’s partial neutralization, Chu Yang had already made preparations well beforehand. There was already an incomplete version of the Nine Tribulations Pill in his mouth long ago.
Intense and turbulent energy currents slammed against Chu Yang. Blood drained from his face and a mouthful of blood spurted from his mouth.
Before the Nine Tribulations Pill could even take effect, another forceful energy current from Tan Tan’s body slammed against him. Both senior and junior disciples fell to the ground, their bodies turning and flipping as they plummeted through the air. Gu Duxing and Mo Tianji leaped into the air at the same time. Then, they felt a violent tremor passing through their arms, as if they had been electrocuted. The four of them then crashed onto the ground.
“Goddamnit…” The crash threw Tan Tan into a confused daze. The moment he opened his mouth, a curse left his lips.
Chu Yang’s heart was set at ease. He felt as if another bomb had exploded in his chest. That unbearable feeling made him cough up another couple mouthfuls of blood. Only then did his chest feel somewhat more comfortable. The Nine Tribulations Pill then started to take effect…
High up in the sky, Lan Buhui stood unmoving, his figure tall and upright in mid-air!
His eyes were fixated on Tan Tan the entire time, watching as Tan Tan turned into a tornado, falling and then being caught…
Abject disappointment appeared in his eyes. A hint of a bitter smile then appeared on his lips.
Opposite him, a violent hurricane rampaged around. Everywhere that it passed by in the mountain ranges 100 miles opposite, a wide path was cleared out!
In fact, a few mountains were even uprooted by the energy current from the hit that missed its target. The mountains overturned again and again backwards in mid-air! The momentum was grand and massive, as though the very heavens and earth themselves overturning!
The four brothers laid exhausted on the ground as they watched Lan Buhui in the sky.
Chu Yang was on full alert, in case Lan Buhui still had the strength to attack again. If that happened, the Sword Spirit would take over his body at once.
Coughing, Tan Tan said, “It’s fine… He’s no different from waiting for death at this point!”
In the sky, Lan Buhui’s blue robes fluttered in the breeze. He smiled slightly and shook his head lightly, chuckling softly as he said, “I ultimately cannot escape death today, even after the passage of ten thousand years.”
He turned and looked at Mo Tianji, who was lying on the ground. Sighing, he said, “You said that the Lan Clan committed sins that went against what was right and also said that the Lan Clan was utterly devoid of conscience… But do you know that among the Nine Super Clans, even though the one ranked the weakest on paper is the Shi Clan, it is in fact the Lan Clan!”
“I am indeed not very accomplished, but those things such as wrecking other people’s bodies and seizing other people’s souls in order to cultivate are strictly forbidden by me in the Lan Clan… When you encounter the other clans… you will realize that Tianlan City is actually… heaven!”
“You once asked me, do I harbor any regrets in this lifetime of mine?”
“I’ll tell you now… I do! But… even if I can do it all over again, I… will still do the same as what I have done. Perhaps I would still regret it, but there are some things that must be done.”
“Although I have let down the common people by doing so… Mo Tianji… You must understand that people like us, as we climb step by step toward the top, we basically do not have the chance to keep the common people in our consideration anymore.”
“This is something heartless and also something that we are helpless against. Should such a day come for you, you’ll understand how I feel!”
“Just as you said, there has never been any fairness in this world.”
“Just like today, who was ever… fair to me? Hurhur…”
“I’ll go and look for my father myself.”
Lan Buhui looked toward the heavens, two drops of crystal clear tears suddenly falling from his eyes. He murmured, “Father… Before you left, you stroked my hair… How I wish… how I wish… that I could feel your hand again… Even now, I still remember the warmth from that day!”
“I miss you so much!”
Lan Buhui suddenly bellowed madly into the sky, “Even if I can live to a hundred thousand years old or a million years old, I don’t want to be a child who doesn’t have a father or a mother! Do you know that I’d rather exchange these ten thousand years for just a day of you being with me?!”
“You are one of the Nine Tribulations, your glory lives on forever!”
“But I’m your son, so why is it that I can only wait to be destroyed by others ten thousand years later?!”
“Why?!!”
His sad and shrill voice shook the blue skies. Amidst his cries, millions of sunlight, moonlight and starlight suddenly shot out from within Lan Buhui’s body. His big and tall body suddenly scattered and dissipated in this sudden eruption of light of three stars and vanished without a trace.
It was as if they didn’t exist before… As if he had never once been here!
The tremors in the distance had already subsided.
Silence reigned in the surroundings.
For a very, very long time, none of the four men spoke.
“You are one of the Nine Tribulations, your glory lives on forever!”
“But I’m your son, so why is it that I can only wait to be destroyed by others ten thousand years later?!”
“Why?!!”
It seemed as if Lan Buhui’s voice was still echoing in their ears.
Why?
Mo Tianji heaved a heavy sigh. “Lan Buhui is not a wicked man who committed the most heinous of crimes. His sin of condonation is also indeed unforgivable. However, if we talk only about his character itself, he could still be considered a good man.”
Gu Duxing took a breath and nodded. “It’s a shame about him!”
Mo Tianji was rather melancholic. “But he had to die today no matter what! It wouldn’t do if he didn’t!”
Gu Duxing nodded.
Chu Yang looked a little weary. His injuries hadn’t fully healed yet. “There are also good men among the enemy camp, Duxing. Just like Tu Qianhao and Li Xiongtu whom we met in the Middle Three Heavens… Which of them wasn’t a man of firm and unyielding character? But each of us has our own standpoint; this battle is inevitable. Life and death, victory and defeat, they are but the most common of happenings. There’s no need to take it to heart. If we can’t kill our enemies just because of mutual appreciation… Then this world would be so much cleaner and purer.”
Gu Duxing and Mo Tianji couldn’t help but break into chuckles.
Tan Tan waved dismissively. “You guys can continue talking. I overexerted myself a little earlier… Seems like I’ve pulled a muscle… I’ll be fine after I rest and recover a bit.”
Xie Danfeng had long since run over from a hidden spot. She was right by Tan Tan’s side, fussing over him in concern.
Chu Yang and the other two very wisely chose not to be third wheels and walked to the side.
“Boss, when did you come here?” Mo Tianji asked with his eyes narrowed. “Why was it so coincidental?”
“Wasn’t it?” Chu Yang rolled his eyes. “When Lan Buhui just arrived at the window, Tan Tan and I had also reached. We waited outside the entire time while listening to the three of you going on and on non-stop for almost an entire morning…”
Mo Tianji and Gu Duxing were relatively speechless. “If you had already arrived at that point… then why…”
Chu Yang snorted and replied, “If I don’t let the two of you experience some pain, how would you remember this lesson!”
Mo Tianji and Gu Duxing were rather embarrassed.
Gu Duxing’s mouth opened and closed for a moment before he said, “This is all my fault! Tianji’s plan was going along fine, but I just couldn’t help being skeptical for a while there. Then, I got a little dissatisfied and almost caused us to reach a point of no redemption! It’s my fault!”
Chu Yang nodded. “It’s fine as long as you’re aware. Dissatisfaction or unhappiness among the brothers is the source of our destruction. It’ll ultimately land us in huge trouble. It turned out fine this time because Tan Tan and I had gotten here in time, but can you be sure that you’ll be this lucky every single time?”
The two of them hung their heads in shame.
“Also…” Chu Yang spoke with emphasis. “Regarding the phrase ‘the Nine Tribulations don’t die’, all of you’d better erase it from your minds! If you continue to remember this phrase, even if you don’t believe in it, it’ll also subtly influence your mindsets bit by bit, causing you to become careless before you know it. If that happens… we’ll be finished!”
